There was nothing at all flashy about yesterday’s 27-16 win over the Kansas City Chiefs. Then again, there’s really nothing flashy about the New York Giants.  We don’t have a big-name game-breaking wide receiver like Randy Moss or Terrell Owens that can make highlight reel 80-yard touchdown catches. However, we do have Steve Smith, a receiver who at this point in the season may very well deserve to be mentioned as one of the top receivers in the league. With another 11 catches for 134 yards and 2 touchdowns yesterday, Smith added to his league-leading 34 receptions and 411 yards. That’s right, a Giants receiver actually leads the NFL in receptions and yards through 4 weeks. And our biggest weakness this season was supposed to be our wide receivers, right? Am I remembering correctly?

We don’t have a big flashy running back either, like for example an Adrian Peterson. Someone who can break the big run at any moment, someone who keeps defenses on their toes. What we do have though is Brandon Jacobs, who is perhaps the best in the league at just grinding down the defense. When Jacobs is taking a breather on the sidelines it’s Ahmad Bradshaw that will change up the pace and snake his way through holes.

Maybe most importantly, the Giants are doing what they are supposed to be doing. Now you might ask why I would praise them for beating the Kansas City Chiefs, a team that is arguably one of the worst in the league. It’s because in this league, beating the teams you are supposed to beat is one of the most important factors in the winning formula; and it’s easier said than done. If you’ve followed this team since the 1990’s, like I have, then you certainly know that it’s easier said than done. How many times have Giants fans been let down by a shocking loss to a team we were supposed to beat? Too many times. Super Bowl titles can’t fully cure it either. Even last season, as defending champs, we walked into Cleveland for a Monday Night game with all the swagger of a 4-0 team, but played more like a team that was 0-4. Instead of improving to 5-0, we fell victims to the trap game and were completely outplayed and embarrassed by the Browns in front of a national audience.

Two weeks ago against Tampa Bay, the Giants did not let that happen. Yesterday in Kansas City, the Giants did not let that happen. Like I said, the game yesterday was not flashy. In fact, it was downright boring. I’ll admit it. Don’t expect it to pop up on ESPN Classic anytime soon. The Giants outgained Kansas City 429-193, with a large percentage of the Chiefs’ total yards coming on their last two drives of the game. The Giants led 27-3 with about 11 minutes to go after Eli Manning’s 54-yard touchdown pass to Hakeem Nicks, probably the most exciting play of the game. Nicks made several Kansas City defenders miss on his way to the end zone. However, Eli’s third touchdown pass of the game was overshadowed by the heel injury that he sustained on the play immediately before Nicks’ touchdown.

The injury does not appear to be serious, although Manning will undergo a precautionary MRI later this afternoon to assess any possible damage. He did not return to the game following the touchdown pass to Nicks, but did not look noticeably hurt on the sidelines. He was also not given a boot or crutches. The injury does however open up the opportunity for sentences like this to be written on ESPN.com, where “heel” and “heal” are used in succession: “Manning said his status for Sunday’s home game against the Oakland Raiders would depend on how fast the heel heals.”

The Giants will return home next week to face the Oakland Raiders after winning three straight road games for the first time since the 2007 playoffs. It is only the 8th time that it has been done in NFL history. The trap that Big Blue has to try not to fall into, is looking ahead to their Week 6 match-up with the 4-0 Saints, a game that could end up being one of the most important games in the NFC early on in this season.

Coming up on Wednesday, I’m going to try out a mid-week column to digest the first quarter of this NFL season and try to figure out why there seems to be an oddly disproportionate amount of bad teams this year.